"While SACD and DVD-Audio are vying to be the replacement for the traditional CD, the CD may be fighting back with a new twist: SRS Circle Surround Sound. Basically, while SACD and DVD-Audio have sonic advantages over traditional CDs and offer surround sound music playback, they require specifically equipped players and AV receivers. SRS Labs, however, has developed its Circle Surround to be encodable on standard CDs and still maintain complete compatibility standard CD players, whether connected to a stereo or surround sound receiver. In essence, if you play a Circle Surround encoded CD through a standard stereo receiver, you will get the standard stereo playback. However, if you play the Circle Surround encoded CD through a basic surround sound receiver, you can get a full 5.1 channel surround musical experience, depending on the receiver's decoding capabilities. For additional details on how this may affect the music landscape, check out the report from Stereophile Magazine." -- http://hometheater.about.com/b/2004/07/01/cd-surround-sound.htm

Interesting!

Check out the date of the articles - it's seems highly unlikely to happen now as an audio only system.

It also sounds like some pseudo-surround system generated from two tracks. While it may give some spacial or immersive feel I doubt the integrity of the recording can be very well maintained. It certainly won't be 6 or 7 channels of full bandwidth uncompressed audio where the artist/producer has decided upon instrument positioning etc. (rather than some vague electronic decoder circuit).

The current SRS Circle Surround II processors are still aimed at surround sound home cinemas.

I think at the end of it all, when it comes to music, 2 channels is the way to go, because we have 2 ears, and when we go to see a band/orchestra/opera etc  they tend to all be on the same stage in front of us...

Sure, in films it is great to have spaceships flying overhead, helicopters landing behind you etc, and this is the role of multi-channel audio.  In a battlefield, out in the street etc there are things going on all around you, and a surround setup certainly helps with that immersion.

But when playing  a CD, Billy Joel didn't sit in front of you, playing a piano behind  you.... The Who didn't make Entwistle "stand over there", so multi-channel audio is not the system to reproduce their music....

I can agree when at a gig you have noise all around, but the band is front and centre.  The sounds from the side/behind are there so the people who didn't get good tickets can still hear something....

Of course, the sounds of the couple having an argument behind you may add to the feel, but do you really need to reproduce it in your own home? 

Maybe a device that would elbow you in the back and spill beer on your shirt would add something also, but I can do without it

I see what you're saying, but in reality, when we see live performances, sound is coming from all around us in 360º.

The ideal system would have 4 'main speakers', 2 in front, 2 behind, and 1 above (floor reflections from directly below you are insignificant for listening). Unfortunately, while this may be the ideal system, it's the recording which matters most (how this whole thread effectively started).

Going back to the original topic - the B&O system works the best out of all the available systems I've used. You can choose specific speaker configurations with video, and with audio. Other systems seem to force you to either always have all the speakers on, only stereo, or automatic switching (even if you really want to listen in Dolby 3 on stereo sources, which the B&O system will let you do).